Indians are known for their strong affinity towards sweets. Be it the spongy and humble rasgulla or the quintessential halwa, we can't just do away without a sweet dish. However, humble halwa has made its presence on almost all occasions. Be it for a comforting winter dinner or pooja or wedding, there’s a variety of halwa for each special occasions. Out of all the halwas that Indians know, have you ever heard of black halwa or karutha halwa? Well, if your answer is no, then I get you. Because I was the same before one of my friends mentioned it to me.
A classic sweet dish of Kerala, Karutha halwa is made with rice flour, unrefined coconut sugar and jaggery. The jaggery is dark brown or black in colour due to the addition of jaggery and coconut sugar in it. The ingredients used to make the dish are staple and quintessential to the state and are easily available. The jaggery, coconut sugar and rice flour give the halwa a distinct flavour, texture and aroma altogether. The hlawa is similar to a dish popular in Goa, Mangalore and Sri Lanka called ‘Dodol’.
To make Karutha halwa, add jaggery powder to a pan with water, bring it to a boil and strain t to remove any impurities. To another pan, add coconut milk and the jaggery syrup and mix well to combine. To the same pan, add rice flour and mix well to avoid any lumps. At this stage, start adding ghee and coconut oil simultaneously by stirring it continuously. Add unrefined coconut sugar and allow it to caramelise to bring the right colour to the dish. Add a pinch of cardamom powder, dry ginger powder and some chopped nuts and mix well. Remove the halwa from the flame once the halwa separates from the coconut oil and the oil starts floating on the surface.
You can serve the halwa in a bowl or set it in a greased tray and cut it into cubes and relish.
